Summer's #1 Accessory

Like so many things in my noggin', I can't remember exactly when I saw this ad first for a woman's skin care product:  Your number one accessory this summer, is your skin! I do remember however, how much I wanted my skin to be just that. I had spent an entire lifetime aching to be like the girl and woman next door with cute tops, shorts, skirts and sundresses.  It all seemed to be the impossible dream.

I paid my dues in the summer time as a cross dresser. Due to work considerations, I couldn't remove the hair from my arms so I had to find the very rare piece of women's clothing which covered my arms in the summer.  I did end up finding a few tops here and there which were very lightweight and wearable. However, I just drew attention to myself  being the only woman in the room wearing long sleeves on a sweltering summer day.

My legs were a different story.  Even before I started HRT, I had no problem keeping my legs free of hair. In fact, the older I got, the less I had!  Very quickly I was able to do what most every other woman was doing around me- going bare legged in the summer time. Shorts/skirts-you name it-no panty hose. Like so many guys who cross dress, I was told I had good legs. So I shopped for a couple shorter denim and dressier flared skirts.  By wearing them, I found I could almost balance my covered arms with  "uncovered" legs.  My problem then became, how was I going to continue using my homemade set of foam hip pads? I always held them in place with panty hose because I always disliked the restrictions of a girdle.  The system wasn't perfect, but I got by. What I  finally ended up doing was cutting a pair of hose off well above the skirt line so the pads were in place but didn't show.

Now of course, all of those contortions are behind me, as I go into what I call another summer furnace.  For all you Cyrsti's Condo regulars, you know how much I bitch and complain what HRT has done to my body's thermostat.  Roasting in the summer and freezing in the winter.  Certainly I wasn't the only one freezing last winter in Ohio during the "Polar Vortex" last winter and to get even, it is supposed to be really hot around here this summer.

I'm a believer that "Momma Karma" giveth and she taketh away.  I certainly will "take the heat" for the chance of my skin being my number one accessory this summer.  The effects of HRT have smoothed out my skin and decreased my muscle mass, so I can wear sleeveless tops this summer.  I still don't wear many skirts, instead I stocked up on quite a few pairs of Capris from the thrift stores.  Finally, I took advantage of the Memorial Day weekend sales to pick up a couple pairs of what I call fancy "flip flops." To wear them, I managed a  DIY basic pedicure on my feet.  As far as my hair goes, hot wigs are out-my own hot hair is in. Not much of a big change except I can't reach up and pull off my hair to cool off!

So this part of the year is pretty cool- when it's hot because I have waited so many years to get here and it's everything I thought it would be.

Finally, If I get brave and not think I am overly drawing attention to myself at the Trans Ohio Symposium this weekend, I will ask Liz to take some pictures-maybe!

Dealing from the Middle of the Gender Deck

Following yet another tragic burst of violence which killed many in California this time, I read with interest more than a few views of how genetic women felt about the attack.  If you hadn't heard, female rejection was stated as one of the main causes of the random violence.  Many times, when I'm looking for a genetic feminine written reaction to a tragedy such as this, theFrisky site usually never lets me down.  This time the site ran a post called "Not All Men Are Dangerous, But Yes, Women Do Live In Fear Of Elliot Rodger's Fury."

We have discussed here in Cyrsti's Condo, the serious need to be increasingly aware of how our world as we transition. How we need to learn how to be extra safe in it as MtF transgender women or cross dressers. This last incident though is extra scary to me partly from all my life experiences dealing from the middle of the gender deck.

As a guy, I knew a few other guys who were flat out scary in any number of ways.  I had a dishwasher in one of the big restaurant kitchens I ran who I told regularly "when he blew up and headed to his car for a gun to shoot the rest of the cooks who harassed him-give me five extra steps to get out the back door."  It got to the point of when I told him something to do, I asked. It's only now I'm beginning to learn what women feel like on a much broader spectrum.

Toss in the fact, that anyone and everyone seems to be able to come up with a semi automatic weapon in this country and the world becomes even more scarier.

I remember vividly the days when I was searching the dating sites for even just a friend. What I found from the male side of aisle were mostly who thought somehow I was desperate for their company, or the ones who only wanted to meet me in an out of the way motel where their wife wouldn't find out.  I did set up very public dates with a few-ended up being stood up more times than not and pretty much just gave it up.  I can't say some of those guys I didn't meet weren't like the ticking time bomb Elliot Rodger was.

Obviously, I was never the guy Rodgers' was and luckily only knew a select few that were.  I can understand the headline though and resent it because of what it says about men.  On the other hand, more and more now, I can see why women are thinking it.

Cyrsti's Condo "What If?"

So what if the pageant is over, why do I have to change my clothes to go dinner with the family?